Under continuing pressure for employing two well-known Democratic communications strategists on the public payroll, Gov. Gray Davis announced late Friday that he had scrapped their deal. In a statement released at 7:42 p.m., Davis announced that he had dropped a controversial contract with high-priced communications consultants Mark Fabiani and Chris Lehane. Davis' statement said that Fabiani left state service altogether, and that Lehane would work for a lower fee.

The Davis administration is paying a young business consultant with barely a year's experience in the energy industry $240,000 annually to head a team of traders who secure California's daily electricity supply. State officials hired Susan T. Lee, 30, in April without competitive bidding under an emergency declaration by Gov. Gray Davis. Lee's contract is equal to the $20,000 a month that Davis pays his chief energy advisor, S. David Freeman, a top utility executive for decades.

A visionary, it appears, is worth less than a CEO. At least that's the case at Irvine-based Mossimo Inc., where the going rate for the talents of founder Mossimo Giannulli, the self-anointed visionary--that's his official title--is $300,000 a year. The amount represents a 40% pay cut from 1997, when Giannulli was chief executive and earning $500,000. Giannulli's pay was disclosed in the apparel designer's annual proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Under continuing pressure for employing two well-known Democratic communications strategists on the public payroll, Gov. Gray Davis announced late Friday that he had scrapped their deal. In a statement released at 7:42 p.m., Davis announced that he had dropped a controversial contract with high-priced communications consultants Mark Fabiani and Chris Lehane. Davis' statement said that Fabiani left state service altogether, and that Lehane would work for a lower fee.

The Davis administration is paying a young business consultant with barely a year's experience in the energy industry $240,000 annually to head a team of traders who secure California's daily electricity supply. State officials hired Susan T. Lee, 30, in April without competitive bidding under an emergency declaration by Gov. Gray Davis. Lee's contract is equal to the $20,000 a month that Davis pays his chief energy advisor, S. David Freeman, a top utility executive for decades.

After six months of grass-roots organizing for Gov. Pete Wilson's presidential bid, Mitch Zak suddenly found himself out of work when the campaign fizzled last fall. But Wilson took care of him. Within weeks, Zak was installed as a special assistant to the state Fish and Game director. His new salary was 80% higher than his old one as a governor's office assistant--a job that he quit to stump for Wilson.

A visionary, it appears, is worth less than a CEO. At least that's the case at Irvine-based Mossimo Inc., where the going rate for the talents of founder Mossimo Giannulli, the self-anointed visionary--that's his official title--is $300,000 a year. The amount represents a 40% pay cut from 1997, when Giannulli was chief executive and earning $500,000. Giannulli's pay was disclosed in the apparel designer's annual proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

After six months of grass-roots organizing for Gov. Pete Wilson's presidential bid, Mitch Zak suddenly found himself out of work when the campaign fizzled last fall. But Wilson took care of him. Within weeks, Zak was installed as a special assistant to the state Fish and Game director. His new salary was 80% higher than his old one as a governor's office assistant--a job that he quit to stump for Wilson.